SPR: Halfshot collection!
by AmyNChan
Summary: Collection of half-written one shots concerning the characters of Ghost Hunt. Always incomplete, as these are half-written one shots, meant for inspiration or even just to be scoffed at. Enjoy!
1. Brothers prompt

**_14AmyChan: okay, so I've seen one shot collections, but never half-shots. Most likely because the idea is ridiculous, but whatever. I don't own Ghost Hunt. Oh, and most of whatever goes in this collection has been sitting in my memory for a while, never moving forward with no ideas to keep it going. Hope you enjoy. *^_^*_**

Oliver Davis was a man of few words. Not that he did not know how to speak. On the contrary, he was a very skilled debater and could wrap an audience around his finger with an adequate amount of well-chosen dialogue. Rather, he chose not to grace his words upon people who would not have the appropriate brain capacity to understand him or the proper frame of mind to *want* to understand him. In many cases, the situation was the former.

After all, not many people can keep up with a prodigy of any category. Musical prodigies would pass their mentors up in only a few years, much to the latter's befuddlement. Prodigies of the sports fields would have an endurance only comprehended by a select few. As such, an intellectual prodigy such as himself had a reverence for knowledge and respect for hard-earned and well-documented experiences that seemed to be misunderstood by all who surrounded him.

"Put down your books, Noll!" his twin brother would call. Noll would roll his eyes. "Play with me!"

Due to reasons stated in the first paragraph, Oliver would not respond with words. The latter of the two situations, not the former. Rather, he would flip a page of a book and continue to read, to absorb information already revealed by researchers, scientists past. By the age of nine, the boy had decided to discover something new. To earn and document his own findings.

Eventually, his brother had begun to accept what his twin was and assist in the goals of his life. Eugene often teased the intellectual, though, often dubbing him the "idiot scientist". It was one of the many things that the scientifically-inclined boy had learned to accept should he want his brother's assistance. After all, having a person that understood his goals and methods was a blessing not to be wasted.

_**14AmyChan: okay, use this as a prompt, build upon it, I don't mind either way. But if you do, then please let me know. I Anna see what you guys come up with because this kind of stumped me. *^_^***_


	2. CH 52 cut

**_14AmyChan: Okay, so if you've been reading SPR: Is This Normal, then you should know that it took me forever to write the 52nd chapter_**

**_Mai: There's a reason for that!_**

**_Naru: She was attempting to tackle the next series of events through two routes of action, and then was planning on picking the one that best worked for the story._**

**_14AmyChan: This was the second version of CH 52, and it was actually written more for the "script" that I had written out, but it kind of flopped on me. XD_**

**_Naru: So, this will remain unfinished, yet published for anyone who wishes to read how AmyChan writes her stories_**

**_Mai: 14AmyChan doesn't own Ghost Hunt!_**

**_14AmyChan: Enjoy~! *^_^*_**

Everything was done with this case. The payment—the complicated action of Mrs. Murray insisting on paying the team in full for their trouble and then Luella secretly returning half of the payment to get even—had been transacted. The orphanage—now safe of any evil auras or threatening moods—was alive with children once more. The team—having gotten their first good sleep in weeks—was now packing for the return trip to Japan.

And herein lay the problem for Mai. As she had not done much _un_packing, there was not much _re_packing for her to do. This left her with ample time and one mission:

To talk to Naru.

Right, piece of cake.

Right?

Wrong.

And those chain of events led Mai here, in front of the door to Naru's hotel room, where she had been standing for the past ten minutes. Given that no one could have stayed in the orphanage during the case for the danger it presented to all of them, the Davises had rented a hotel room for each member of the Japanese SPR group and for all of the children from the orphanage for the duration of the case. It had eventually coming out to the Davises blocking out the fourteenth floor of the poor hotel.

The Davises. Martin, Luella, and Oliver Davis. If memory still served Mai well, then Naru was going to go back home with his parents. While a grown man and technically able to do what he wished, Mai doubted he would return to Japan with the team if his parents wanted to keep an eye on him. It was more for their sake than for his, being that they could ensure his safety far more easily in the same house than if he were across an ocean. The loss of Gene had impacted them all, so keeping together was a logical move for the family. And something Oliver would probably do for his parents.

Even if that meant leaving the Japanese SPR team and herself behind once more. This being the case, a few questions arose in Mai's head.

If Naru was just going to leave, was it even worth it to talk over how they felt or what had happened between them on the Astral Plane?

Since Naru was leaving, was the SPR branch in Japan going to become a part of BSPR, or was that not going to happen, the office close, and herself have to find a new job?

Would she ever see Naru again? Would any of them?

Mai took a deep breath. There were a few ways to answer these questions. One required patience, which she had an abundance of, evidently. This was waiting for the answers to actually play out in her life and see what happened. The other was comprised of courage. This was the more difficult of the options: actually asking Naru and talking to him. The first option would have had her in pain for the duration of her wait; the second required her to get the ball going and actually knock on the door and have the conversation, giving herself no more than two hours' pain tops. Of course, that did not include emotional pain after the conversation…

Mai finally knocked on the door, her somewhat cowardly heart half-hoping he was not in.

"The door is open," his cool voice slipped past the door which was, as he stated, ajar. Mai looked down and noticed that he had stuck a wedge in the doorframe, most likely in event that someone had needed to speak with him.

_He's __always__ prepared, isn't he?_ Mai mused as she pushed passed the door. Allowing the door to return to rest upon the wedge again behind her, the first thing that greeted Mai's sight was Naru folding a shirt and placing it inside his suitcase. He was packing.

"Hey, Naru?" Mai asked. She got a grunt in reply, which gave her no time to think about which question she was going to ask first. Should she ask about them? Or him? What had happened on the Astral Plane? Or what he was going to do now?

Best to deal with the present/future first.

"What are you going to do now?" she inquired, trying to sound nonchalant, but failing miserably. She held her breath as he neatly folded some slacks and placed them in his bag.

"Now?" Naru drawled, as though he were debating whether or not to answer her. He chose the oh-so-popular smart-aleck Naru way. "I'm packing for the flight now. And then I will obviously be getting on said flight."

"I meant when you get to the airport, dummy," Mai seethed, not amused with his antics. She felt a touch of amusement coming off of his thoughts—which were hazier to her now as opposed to before. She could not read his thoughts verbatim anymore. Good. "Which flight are you taking?"

Naru left his suitcase for a moment and disappeared into the bathroom. He reemerged not a moment later with his toothbrush, toothpaste, and deodorant. He packed these items into a small pouch in his suitcase before answering her.

"Is your remaining brain cell still functioning?" Naru teased, his face passive, but another small amount of amusement coming off of him, as well as another emotion she could not define. Mai did not appreciate him trying to derail the conversation, something he is actually quite good at doing without other people noticing.

She, however, was paying very much attention to this conversation.

"You don't have to be a jerk about it, Naru," Mai frowned, frustrated. "Just answer the question!"

"I will be on the same flight as you," he said cryptically. Mai thought about this for a moment. She, obviously, wanted to go back to Japan, if for nothing else than to see her parents' graves, to eat Japanese food again, and to be back in her own bed. But what if Naru was hinting that she was coming to England with him? For what purpose? Would she go to England to have her powers explored further, and would she even get a say in it?

"Sooo…which flight is that?" the brunette girl asked hesitantly, knowing full well that she might be sounding like an idiot to Naru right now, but the need to know outweighing the foolishness she felt.

"I feel I do not have to explain my answer," Naru said as he walked around the bed his suitcase rested on. He opened up the drawer on the dresser next to said bed and pulled out some half-moon glasses. Perhaps they were reading glasses…?

"Tough, explain it anyways," Mai challenged, planting her feet firmly into this conversation as well as in real life. She crossed her arms in front of her, physically stating that she would not leave until she had the answers she came for.

"Mai, which flight do you _intend_ on taking?" the raven haired man inquired, not sparing her a glance. Mai blinked at the question. Naru was talking cryptically, as though he were avoiding something, now that she thought about it. She tried to pick up any sort of emotion from him, but right now there was only that one emotion that she could not quite put a name to…

"I _intend_ on going to my home, Naru," she answered, emphasizing _intend_ greatly. Though, the more she thought about it, the more she wondered. Japan was her home. Had been for the longest time. However, if she were truly being honest, her home was where her family was. Her parents she always took with her, in the forms of pictures in her wallet and the key in her pocket. Nowadays, she felt most at home when she was with SPR. So, technically, she was already home, and would continue to be home on the plane and on the way to Japan.

As long as she was with her family.

"There is your answer," Naru said, having placed his glasses in the pocket of his shirt. He looked around the room, scanning for anything that might have been forgotten. Yet, as usual, he had not forgotten a thing. He began to zip his suitcase swiftly.

"So, you're going to your home?" Mai asked, confused. She just wanted a straight answer. Was he going to Japan, with her and the rest of SPR, or to England, with his parents to the place he had grown up and spent his childhood and many of his teenage years? Naru stopped packing, but did not turn to face her. Mai could feel a small burst of nervousness from him before he spoke again, though as soon as it appeared, the feeling was gone. Gone or repressed. Mai was unsure if it had even been there at all with how quickly it had flown through her.

"Mai, I am not a man of many words or sentiments, I trust you know that."

"I know," she replied easily. Naru was not one to say how he felt or what he thought. It seemed as though he did not care for others to know what was truly on his mind. Rather, he typically used his actions and relied on the brainpower of those around him to communicate what was going on in his head. Except for now, for some reason. He seemed to be speaking more than usual, and hinting that he _really_ wanted her to understand what was going on through his head. But what could that be?

"I do not toss my words carelessly."

"I know," she repeated. If anything, he and Lin seemed to live by the rule of the less said the smarter you are. She briefly wondered in a world like that what her IQ would be. She was amused for a moment, her mind slightly distracted from Naru's puzzling state.

"I am going home, yet I am already there," Naru finished cryptically. Mai came back to the conversation from her mild distraction and instantly wanted to pull her hair out. She thought Naru knew she was rubbish at riddles! If he wanted her to understand what he was trying to tell her, then why not just say it outright?

_Because he's infuriating Naru, that's why_, Mai seethed in her mind. However, rather than say that out loud, she complained in a different way.

"Naru, you're being too cryptic! I don't get it! Can't you just say what you mean? Cause I'm lost," she asked. Naru had never been one for riddles before. That was typically Gene's department, and only for cases…

_Brothers…_ she thought, frowning slightly at the traits they _chose_ to share. _They're both jerks…_

"You would be. Your brain cell can only handle so much at one time," Naru stated as he shook his head. He turned to look at her just in time to see her face to turn insanely red with frustration.

"I said something earlier about being a jerk, don't you remember?" Mai asked through gritted teeth. It was like Naru was _trying_ to rile her up every chance he got.

"My memory is not the one in need of testing," he said easily. Though his face was stoic and his tone monotone, she just _knew_ Naru was trying to keep her riled up.

And blast it all, it was working!

"What, so mine is?" she accused. Naru gave a brief nod of his head.

"Clearly."

"Why you—" Mai began her threat while stomping toward her boss. If he did not lay off the insults, then she would probably be sued for manslaughter. But if it was premeditated, it was murder…

"I'm going home. I'm already home. And I'm taking the plane you're taking to my home. Prove to me that you're smart enough to figure that out," Naru ordered, never taking his eyes off of Mai's. Those blue orbs were crisp, yet somehow warm. Icy, yet somehow gentle. Demanding and inquiring all at once. And there was that unnamed feeling coming off of him again.

Those eyes and that newfound wave of that strong yet nameless emotion caught Mai off guard for a moment, and made her think about Oliver's words. If you could _go home_ and already _be home_, then that meant your home was moving alongside you. And the only thing that resembled a home and would move while he did would be people. It would make sense for _his parents _to be his home, but he had not specified that he would be taking the plane with his parents. He had specified that he would be taking the plane with…

Her.

Wait.

Wait.

Wait.

She was his home? Perhaps she was assuming too much… But… She kind of wanted it to be true. But that assumption would mean that he would return to Japan, and not to England with his parents, who had wanted their son to go with them to England.

Oliver watched as the cogs worked in Mai's head. He was tired of the knowledge that Mai did not love him. He wanted to believe that Gene was correct in shouting his parting words.

"_Noll and Mai! Get together already and make me a proud uncle! If you don't, I'm sending an accomplice to bother you until you do!"_

Such a blunt way to say things… Still, over the events that had transpired over the case, Oliver had begun to allow himself to _want _to think that Mai would love him. As such, this was his way of finding out if there was any merit to Gene's belief that Mai did indeed love the more stoic of the twins. And if she openly said she was not interested, then…

Then…

The great Oliver Davis had not thought that far yet. One of the reasons he was stalling for time in giving Mai riddles. He knew she was rubbish at them at first, but would get it eventually. It usually took a while, but she had a knack for eventually figuring them out, if not by brainpower then by luck or chance.

For now, he could only wait, and brace himself for the oncoming rejection.

"What about your parents?" Mai finally asked, taking a different route. His parents were _obviously_ going to England. How was he going to get them to be all right with him going back to Japan while they remained in England?

"What about my parents?" Naru returned. He wondered if it was Mai who was stalling now. He took a seat on the edge of the hotel bed, making himself comfortable. Well, as comfortable as one Naru could be in such a situation. A portion of his brain whispered that this could be Mai looking for a way to reject him gently. Naru tried to push it away with little success.

"W-well, the rest of the team told me that they wanted you to stay close to them," Mai explained hurriedly. She tore her gaze from Naru, feeling as though she had done something wrong by hearing such a thing. "So—"

"You assumed that meant I would return to England with them," Naru finished, having easily connected the dots. Mai nodded furiously, her brown hair somehow becoming a slight mess on the top of her head. The distraction Mai's hair caused for Naru amused him slightly, getting his mind a little bit off of the issue of Mai's oncoming rejection. However, the instant his amused state crossed his mind, Mai turned to glare at him.

Naru half-wanted to chuckle at Mai's pitiable attempt. Instead, he answered her unasked query, hoping to get rid of any possible way for her to use an excuse to reject him.

"Has it ever occurred to you that my parents are, in fact, mobile and would enjoy traveling to Japan every once in a while?" Naru proposed. Mai's eyes widened as she took that information in.

"So, you're not going to England… your parents are…"

"Coming to Japan, yes," Naru finished her statement. A small amount of silence passed before Mai allowed herself to smile. She released the breath she had been holding in the form of a laugh. It was a second before her brow furrowed in worry.

"But… what about your father? He doesn't speak Japanese," Mai wondered aloud.

"He started learning the day the case started," Naru informed her. "He's learned the basic formalities quickly enough for the past three weeks and has become more curious about the Japanese SPR team as a whole."

"I see," Mai smiled, feeling relieved. Naru and his parents would be returning to Japan with the rest of the team. Her home would not be split apart. She chuckled lightly. "I'm glad."

"Why is that?" Naru asked. He was actually interested in her answer to the question. Was it because she did not have to look for a new job? Would she have actually been sad or relieved to see him go?

"I didn't want you to leave," Mai admitted, her face red. Before Naru could say a word, she held up a finger in front of her, silently asking him not to say anything. "And before you start, I know that's selfish, but I really didn't want you to go. Didn't want you to leave the first time either, but…"

"I had to bury Gene," Naru stated firmly. Mai nodded.

"I know that, which is what makes me even more selfish. You have a duty to your family, your title, and pretty much who you've grown to be your entire life, and here I was just trying to keep you to myself," Mai laughed, though it sounded more hollow this time. "I can't believe I'm ending up saying this again…"

"Again…?" Naru prompted. He had a feeling he knew what she was going to say, and while part of him wanted to hear it, another—stronger—part of him wanted to test the authenticity of the statement. However, he may have said something a touch too soon, as Mai's eyes flashed defensively before him.

"Yes, Naru, _again_," Mai huffed. "I still love you, you idiot scientist."

Suddenly, Naru did not want to hear the rest of what Mai had to say. What was he thinking? That Mai would love him? That she would say she only loved Gene as a brother? What if it was worse? What if she had held onto the delusion that she loved him for so long that she could not tell the difference?

"Mai," his voice came out stern, telling her to say no more, that he did not want to hear it. As usual, the girl refused to be told what to do. A trait that he inadvertently loved about her was being used against him. Curses.

"And don't you even dare try to tell me how I feel," she argued heatedly before he could get another word in. As if on fire, she continued in a heated tone. "If it were Gene, would I have been so frightened when I woke up in the hospital and thought you were gone?"

Naru could feel a flash of how terrified the girl had been, an echo of remembrance.

"Or how about how I was standing outside the door for fifteen minutes trying to figure out how to say goodbye without crying or what to say when I came in here?" she pushed on. Naru had known that it had been her outside his door, and had felt her turmoil at a distance. He had left her alone to sort through it herself, as he could not have done it for her, though he had not known the reason for her hesitance.

"Naru, I fell for you. _All_ of you. Not just the smiles that are so hard to earn from you, because believe me, when you smile, it's because it was _earned_. I think I've only seen you smile once or twice, and both of those were _hard_ to get," the girl stated. "Not just for the way you always come and save me, not just for the way you're always concerned and always care. While those are also parts I fell in love with you for, I also fell in love with that 'bad' personality of yours, too."

Mai had used air quotes around the word 'bad', indicating that she did not believe he was as terrible as he thought he was. She smiled at him.

"You ask for tea more than twenty times a day. While that may bug me sometimes, I've actually come to like it. It gives me a stupid little thing to do so I can decompress for a few minutes. I like how we argue over the fact that you don't show you have any manners, though after meeting your mother, I know for a fact you have them. And even when no one else would, you believed in me and my abilities, even before you had absolute proof they were even there. And _that_ goes against everything a scientist is," Mai continued.

"You may see yourself as having a bad personality, and while I agree that you're a difficult person to deal with, that doesn't make you unlovable," Mai confided, her face beet red but a little smile on her face. "I know because I fell in love with you. 'Bad' personality and all."

**_14AmyChan: aaand this is where I got stuck. XD_**

**_Naru: hm._**

**_Mai: Well, we hope you enjoyed this peek inside AmyChan's brain!_**

**_14AmyChan: Please read and review~! *^_^*_**


	3. Laws of Leadership

_**14AmyChan: This was a oneshot I was working on to help me with my Human Relations class.**_

_**Mai: She never found the time to finish it while she was in the class and she's forgotten most of them by now.**_

_**14AmyChan: Sad, but true. XD it was gonna be a list on the laws and how Naru fits or doesn't fit them, but I don't have the memory for it.**_

_**Mai: So it'll go here, as an incomplete thing for her readers to enjoy. XD**_

_**14AmyChan: I don't own Ghost Hunt or the Laws of Leadership. *^_^***_

Do not ask Mai how she came to be in this position. She would not be able to tell you. Actually, yes she would. She was in this predicament for one reason, and one reason only:

A homework assignment.

Mai sat back in her office chair with a huff. Well, she called it her "office chair", but it was really just the same old chair behind the same old desk at the same old job. Despite the passage of four years time, the brunette still worked at SPR.

And before you ask, yes, Naru was running it again. He had finished his own degree in England in record time and had traveled back to Japan to run the show. More interesting cases in Japan, he had said.

Seemed legit to Mai.

But now a problem had arisen. She, in college herself now, was facing a rather difficult assignment for one of her college courses. Mai cast another glance at the piece of paper which told her exactly what the task was.

_Identify a leader in your life and—using John C. Maxwell's __The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership__—answer the following questions:_

_Which laws does this leader implement in his/her lead?_

_In what ways can you implement these laws in your own life?_

Of course, they had gone over all of the laws of leadership in class. Mai mentally reviewed them as the laws of lid, influence, process, navigation, addition, solid ground, respect, intuition, magnetism, connection, inner circle, empowerment, picture, buy-in, victory, big momentum, priorities, sacrifice, timing, explosive growth, and legacy. With her notes in front of her, she had no problem identifying the laws.

Picking out just one leader in her life had been a slightly more difficult challenge. There had been so many to choose from. Her parents had been her first choice, but reflecting on the memories she had of them, it had been with bitter reluctance that she admitted she could not remember much on how they had led her. Only that they were her parents and she loves them very much and still misses them.

Her parents were out.

Her teachers had been the next few of her choices, but she felt as though that would have been cheating out of her assignment a little bit. Besides, she did not know many of them very well to do this assignment on them. And the one who had been kind enough to enable her to live for a while had moved far away a few years prior.

The teachers were out.

Bou-san and Ayako had been another two of her options, though they seemed to be more prone to arguing with each other than leading on a continual basis. Sure, either of them could take the reins when the situation demanded, but it was not something they did as a normal routine.

Unfortunately, they were out as well.

Her mind had crossed over then to either Masako or John, whose professions required them to be leaders at some stage or another. John led masses to his God's forgiveness, while Masako led herself and many others in the way she carried herself and her reputation. Still, those two became instant "followers" once they stepped through SPR's doors, so she did not know the "leader" side in them very well.

Out.

Even Lin had crossed her mind, but the man hardly looked away from the computer long enough to make conversation, let alone show how he could lead as well. However, Mai knew the man could lead, as he had taken the reins on a couple of the cases since returning with Naru. Still, it was not enough to do the assignment she needed.

Out.

That had left one other person in her life, and she was frustrated she did not think of it sooner. Her boss! Duh! Even his job proclaimed the fact that he had his leadership points, and she had seen him in action on multiple cases throughout the years.

So it was settled, Naru would be her "identified leader".

The question was which laws did he implement and which ones did he not? This was the question Mai had been pondering for a while now, and she was about ready to tear her hair out. How did she even start?!

"Mai, tea," the call came from the boss's office, and Mai found herself groaning at his request/demand/order. She huffed her way into the kitchen and poured the water into the kettle, slapping it onto the fired up stove to begin the boiling process.

As she went about making the tea, her homework assignment plagued her. She had the _what_ and the _who_, but she still did not know the _how_. With these frustrating thoughts in mind, she presented Naru with his tea.

As had become practically tradition, she waited for a thank-you which they both knew would never come. Still, a girl could hope.

"Did you need anything, Mai?" he asked in a droll voice, irking the poor girl senseless. Just as she was about to tell him off for his lack of manners—again—she thought of something. She could ask for his help!

But it could not be obvious that she was asking him for help on her homework. No, the scenario had to be similar. Something that he would not suspect. Something…

"Take a picture, it will last a lot longer," Naru popped off, and Mai realized she had been staring at him the entire time she had been thinking. The girl wanted to throw something at that face of his. Maybe then he would not be so smug!

_No, Mai_, she warned herself. _You can hit him __after__ he's been helpful._

"How do you know when you're dealing with a poltergeist?" Mai blurted out randomly. Both people in the room stood or sat where they were for a moment.

"Look at the nine criteria and if a majority of them line up with the behavior of the haunting, it is plausible to say you are dealing with a poltergeist," Naru stated, his eyes narrowed slightly. "You haven't been in contact with a poltergeist lately."

It was a statement, not a question. Mai gulped.

"How do you know, mister know-it-all?" Mai shot back. Naru simply raised an eyebrow as if to imply that she had answered the question herself. The brunette seethed for a moment.

"There is another reason for your asking," he stated again. Making ascertains and giving her no room to deny the claims—as true as they may be.

"So how do you match up the behavior with the criteria?" Mai shifted the conversation as best she could, attempting to avert Naru's gaze. It was very difficult.

"Photographic memory," he stated as if it were the simplest thing in the world. Mai wanted to scream. Not everyone had a brilliant brain like he did. Sometimes, she really wished she could smack him for being so smug.

"Not all of us have a photographic memory, jerk!" Mai pouted. Naru smirked. Truth be told, he knew what had brought this on, but teasing Mai was so very enjoyable. Still, he had work to do, and as much as he did not want to admit it, Mai was distracting him. He needed to rid his office of her. He could either tell her the information she was playing with him to get, or he could annoy her so much that she left his office in a raging huff.

"Then write a list," Naru stated, as if bored. Mai nodded, agreeing with this statement. A list! Why had she not thought of it before!

"Then again, perhaps you didn't have enough brain cells to think of such an obvious idea," Naru tacked on as he sipped his tea. Mai's face flushed angrily.

"JERK!" she hollered at him as she slammed his door shut. Behind his teacup, Naru could feel himself smirk. It was always fun to rile that girl up.

Now, then. Back to work.

* * *

Mai sat in her "office chair", a new tactic on her mind. She would write a list! How, one may ask? Easily, she would go in order from one to twenty one. She would write down the law name, a brief description, and think about whether Naru fit the criteria or not. If he did, then cutos for him and for her, as this was _her_ assignment.

She took a deep breath and pulled out a pad of paper and a pencil. Before she started, however, she prepared herself by making herself some tea. Heavens knew she would need the help in concentration for the next three hours.

**_14AmyChan: Mai, I hope you remember the laws better than I did. XD_**

**_Mai: You're trying to kill me, aren't you?_**

**_14AmyChan: *hides knife* whatever gave you that idea? *^_^*_**

**_Mai: *sweatdrops*_**

**_14AmyChan: please read and review~! *^_^*_**


	4. Deleted Scene

_**AmyNChan: Just a deleted scene that didn't make the cut. But it was kind of funny so I decided to give it over to the Internet. Use it as a prompt or something. XD  
**_

"So you tried it on them and it didn't work," she summed up, her eyes still showing that angry glint. Oliver sighed. How many times did he have to explain himself? He nodded, not feeling the need to say anything.

Therefore, the slug he got in the arm was completely unforeseen.

"Mai—!" he seethed, only to be cut off by the woman herself.

"That's for trying to test your thoughts on a small child. I know you didn't mean any harm by it, but learn to draw the line, would ya?" Mai ranted at him. Oliver counted the seconds in his mind as he stayed silent. He reached fifteen when she sighed and turned, resuming the trek back to base. "Don't try it on them again, got it?"

"I understand," Oliver agreed softly. He did not mean to anger Mai, it was simply that it was curious whenever he felt a fluctuation of PK rolling across the skin of a small child, hear a telepathic message, and then be unable to see their past with his psychometry. They were an anomaly. "But who are they?"

**_AmyNChan: Anyhoot, just gonna leave that there then. Ta~! XDDD_**


	5. The Reason

_**AmyNChan: Found this in my google docs. Hadn't touched it in a while... It's probably not gonna finish up any time soon... XD I don't own Ghost Hunt!**_

If you were to ask her, she would undoubtedly tell you that our meeting was the prompting of one of two things: fate or myself. I can assure you the latter is not true, and at the same time I cannot entirely believe that our informal introduction to one another was merely chance. While I do not believe in such things as "fate" or "destiny", I would make an exception for her. But our meeting is where chance or fate ended, and effort began.

You see, I was bound to eventually meet a person outside of my non-pumpkin group that could differentiate the smiles I wear from those of a normal human being. Her blunt refusal of my mere presence intrigued me, and I set out to figure out what exactly was the trait that set her apart from her friends. Thus began my effort.

Animal instinct. I arrived at that conclusion a few months later, whilst on a case with her by my side. I had hired her in order to unravel the mystery of that strange girl, though I could not quite call my findings entirely conclusive. Animal instincts ensure the owner of said instincts with a sense of self-preservation. This is to guarantee survival of the fittest. However, this girl always ran into danger, carelessly flinging herself in harm's way for the sake of strangers. Animal instinct was one thing that made her stand from the rest, but not enough. This was not the entire reason.

Compassion. That was another aspect of her unique personality that I was able to discern over time. Her instincts target those who would not harm her, and her compassion feeds an innate desire to help them and defend them from harm. An unusual combination, I found. Even more unusual that _I _would eventually be on the receiving end of her boundless care, despite our blunt meeting and constant battles of will. Each that I would prevail in, of course. Still, compassion can only carry one so far. This was not the entire reason.

Bravery. Over time, this trait became apparent. While obviously not a knight-even if females would have been given the rank, she would not have been-she had a sense of unyielding courage about her, to the point of utter foolishness. She had that defiant streak that allowed her to stand for what she thought was the correct choice and the volume to make herself heard about it. Bravery is being frightened and standing strong in the face of your fear. She has that and more to spare, though bravery could turn one into a fool in ways she could not fathom. This was not the entire reason.

Kindness. Even in the face of others who would harm her or who have harmed others, she almost always found a way to return to those a shred of humanity towards those who had lost it. She smiled to all, and extruded a warmth that drew in everyone around her. Her kindness and empathy seemed to have no bounds, reaching to even those of us who had no use for such things. Still, this was not the entire reason.

Loyalty. This was a trait I had picked up early on. Even when she disagreed with me she had a way of finding some way to stay on my side. There was only one time she didn't, and that was when her sense of humanity was larger than her loyalty. Still, I would not care for blindly loyal followers. Her loyalty made her admirable, there was no doubt. However, how could one care for the blind loyalty of idiots? This was not the entire reason.

_**AmyNChan: Hope y'all enjoyed! *^_^***_


	6. Say Something--collab with Snavej

_**AmyNChan: Hey, all! Snav and I were working on this super epic story of tear-jerking proportions! However…**_

_**Snavej: The sheer awesomeness of our idea knocked us out and thus we were unable to finish it...**_

_**AmyNChan: Too true… we even had a few chapters labelled out, but we're gonna give it all to you guys in one go! How cool is that?**_

_**Snavej: We are literally too nice to you all! We didn't even kill anyone!**_

_**AmyNChan: *temptation rising* In any event, neither of us own Ghost Hunt. XD**_

_**Snavej: I DO! I HAVE ALL THE MANGA AND ALL THE BOOKS IN JAPANESE!**_

_**AmyNChan: *laughs as readers begin reading***_

Prologue

She pounded at the barrier around her, trying in vain to reach her friends. Tears stung at her eyes as she watched the man she considered a father figure get sliced once more.

"Bou-san!"

"Mai, duck!" a priestess shouted. The girl complied immediately and covered her head, hoping that the red-headed woman's attack would get through. Her heart fell as the charms thrown were sliced to ribbons. To add to the ineffectiveness of the attack, she was blown back into the wall.

"Ayako!"

"Our father in Heaven, hallowed be your name," a priest chanted. His Bible was held in his hands and he prayed with fervency. His rosemary hung from his neck and Holy Water was tossed everywhere. The small amount that landed on the barrier hissed and the creature howled in pain. It shoved the priest to the ground and held him there victoriously.

"John!"

Mai pounded at the barrier once again, quickly becoming hysterical at the sight of her friends going down so quickly. Five orbs of light bypassed her and went to attack the main villain. Mai watched with horror as they were batted away. Like flies.

Their master endured every injury they sustained. Each time they were pushed off, the man would gain another bruise. Another cut. Until he began to cough up blood.

"Lin-san!"

Everyone there was down. Mai beat mercilessly upon the unyielding barrier. She cried and wailed and screamed. Everyone she cared about-

"Mai. Get down."

Her eyes widened. She looked at her boss. He was someone that always protected her, but this.

"Naru! Don't-"

She could not finish her answer. The light had been so bright and the force had knocked her to the ground. She was unable to hold to her conscious state. She slipped into blackness, tears of desperation and loss escaping her eyes as she did so.

Chapter 1

"Mai, tea!" Naru called through from his office.

"Coming!" She called back and rushed to the kitchen to make tea.

It had been a month since _that case_ and they had yet to take another. But after _that case_ Mai wasn't entirely sure the team was ready for another. It had been worse than Urado's mansion or the Yoshimi family combined. Only one client had survived. Naru had been in hospital for two weeks. Ayako had had a serious concussion. John had a broken arm. Lin had more bruises than Mai could count. Monk had had several infected cuts. And Yasuhara, who hadn't even made it to the final showdown, had been locked in the kitchen with the gas hob leaking. He was still in hospital.

And it was all Mai's fault.

If only she hadn't been so stupidly reckless.

The worst part was that none of them blamed her. Not one single member of the team had said anything harsh to her despite the fact that they all knew she deserved it. It was true that she had only been trying to help, but she had made everything a hundred times worse.

The tea shrieked for her attention and Mai instantly turned the hob off. The tea was made quickly and she took it to her boss. She knocked on the door politely and waited for him to bid her entrance. When he did, she put the tea down.

She wondered if she should wait for a thank-you today or if she should wait for a lecture. She stood there, deciding, when the choice was taken from her.

"Mai, I think we need to have a word about the last case."

"Naru, I-" Mai began, but Naru cut her off.

"Keep your excuses to yourself. I do not want to hear them," he said harshly. "You were thoughtlessly reckless and put the entire team in danger."

"I know."

"Shut up." Naru took a deep calming breath. "I cannot have you working cases if your behaviour continues like this."

"What are you saying?" Mai's throat had gone dry.

"I am taking you off cases until you prove that you can work better within a team."

"No! Please Naru! I won't do it again, I promise!" she begged.

"Mai, I cannot afford to take that risk. You have kept dreams and visions from us too often. And this isn't the first time you have acted out like this. To be perfectly honest with you, I am surprised it has taken us this long to get into a situation like this. If you don't like my decision, then you may leave."

"So what am I going to do? Sit around and do paperwork? How am I going to prove myself if I can't join cases?!" Mai protested weakly.

"You can work on improving your abilities and perhaps it would be best if you took some time to work on yourself."

"What? What does that even mean?"

"You are dismissed." Naru said coldly. Mai gave him a confused look before stalking out of the office and slamming the door behind her. Naru let the breath he'd been holding out. It had been the right decision. The rational part of his mind knew that. And yet, he couldn't help but feel some guilt at his choice of words.

The boy knew she was surely angry at him. She had shown that pattern over the years. She would be mad at him before knowing he was right. Then she would work on it.

He hoped she would work on it.

* * *

Lin knew there was something wrong. The office was quiet. He had told Oliver that the girl needed to be told directly what was wrong. Told directly and explicitly otherwise she would be prone to repeat her offenses. He had expected a fight to ensue. He had expected Taniyama-san to yell at him and for Noll to retaliate.

He had not expected the silence that happened. It took him a total of twelve minutes and twenty three seconds to decide it would be far more productive to look outside of his office and assess the damage himself than to remain thinking about the subject.

He opened his door with the same amount of confidence as he would on any other day. His good eye scanned the room.

Taniyama-san was not there.

Lin sighed and walked to Noll's office. He had said to set the girl straight, not to fire her. He knocked and was allowed to enter in a quick succession. The door opened beneath his fingers. Taniyama-san must have slammed it hard enough for the lock not to catch.

"I didn't tell you to fire her."

"I didn't," Oliver said. "I told her to work on herself. She will have probably left without gathering her supplies. When she returns for them, I will allow her to know that if she leaves again, it will be the equivalent of quitting."

"Aren't you going to go after her?" Lin asked. "It's obvious you care for her."

"She is a valuable employee, but a grown woman. She can look after herself."

"I believe this fight in particular stemmed from your belief of the opposite."

Noll had nothing to say to that. Lin sighed, but knew it was not his place to say any more. He left his charge to his work and returned to his office. He knew the young girl would return as Oliver had said.

Though he wondered why he felt as though something would be different upon her return.

* * *

The train was uncharacteristically empty, despite the hour. Mai sat, staring out of the window, reflecting on the conversation she had with her boss.

She desperately wished that she had been a little quicker to come up with some hurtful insults to throw at him. Not that her words ever had an effect on the cold block of ice that was supposedly her boss.

"Narcissistic jerk," she muttered under her breath as the train pulled to a stop. "As if he can talk about being reckless, he could've killed himself with his PK. What an idiot."

On a spur of the moment decision, Mai got up and jumped off the train onto the platform. This wasn't her stop. But she didn't care. She could walk from here.

Not that she really wanted to go home. But where else could she go?

Mai left the station and started down the road in the vague direction of her apartment. She wanted it to rain. Rain would be appropriate right now. Pathetic fallacy or whatever the hell her Japanese teacher had called it. Plus she could be annoyed at the fact that all her clothes were wet. And that of course would be that narcissistic jerk's fault for making her leave the office without her bag and umbrella.

It wasn't long before Mai realised that she did not know where she was. The words 'reckless idiot' floated around her mind in Naru's voice.

"Jerk."

"That isn't very nice missy," a gruff voice said from behind her and Mai span around. Two men were standing very close to Mai and they reeked of sake. "Now how about you just hand over your money and I won't stick you with this knife." He indicated to his hand that was concealed by his jacket pocket.

"You aren't allowed to carry knives. It's against the law." Mai protested.

"Is that so, little missy?" the other man said, chuckling darkly. It was her accursed luck that the man was indeed carrying a knife on him. It glinted in the twilight and was clean enough to show her a reflection of her own terrified eyes.

"Mugging and concealed weapons…" Mai said, trying to be brave. It was foolish, but it was her best shot. "The police won't like you."

"Yeah, but the police don't come around these parts, do they, missy?" the gruff man asked. His beefy hand took a hold of her shirt and he pulled her close to his face. Mai would have wrinkled her nose were she not so terrified. "And no one's gonna hear you scream for 'em, neither."

"Yeah, yer all alone, ain't ya?" the second jabbed.

_Naru… save me…_

"So what's it gonna be?"

_Naru…_

"I don't think she's gonna tell us where it is," the second said. He leaned in closer. "Maybe we should search for it."

_Save me…_

"Good idea," the first agreed. He tried to reach his hand into the pocket of Mai's shorts.

_Naru…_

"Look in her other pocket."

_You're not going to save me…_

"All right."

_Are you?_

"Hey, she's bein' awful...submissive, ain't she?" the first mused aloud. Mai's eyes widened. She reached her hand into her back pocket where she kept her cash and withdrew it. The men eyed the bills greedily.

"Take it!" she screamed, throwing the money as far away from her as she could. The men dropped her and raced off into the street, intent to grab every flimsy paper they could.

While Mai ran. But she knew one thing. She could not always depend on Naru to save her.

She had to learn how to save herself.

* * *

Mai was never quite sure how she found her way home, yet in what seemed like no time at all, she was slamming her front door behind her and sinking to the floor. Adrenaline was pumping through her veins but her mind was focused on only one thought: Naru had been right.

That narcissistic, self-centred, pig-headed, annoyingly intelligent jerk had been completely right.

She had just proven him right. She was every bit as much of an idiot as he had always called her out on being. Not even an hour after he had told her that she needed to work on her reckless behaviour and she had found herself in another dangerous situation.

"Idiot." She hissed at herself. She could feel tears threatening to spill from her eyes but she blinked them back. She was still alive. A few thousand yen poorer, but alive.

Forcing herself to her feet, she fumbled in a drawer for a notepad and pencil.

**Reckless behaviour**, she wrote. What else did she need to fix?

**Not sharing dreams/visions.**

But that thought alone made her blood boil again. As if Naru didn't withhold vital information just to make them all panic. Why wasn't he having to 'work on himself'? Jerk.

Mai left the list on her kitchen counter so she could add to it later. She went into the cupboard to look for her tea leaves, where she found the container and pulled it out easily. When she looked inside, she found that it was nearly empty. She would have to buy some more.

With money that she no longer possessed. Right now, it was probably falling into the hands of a bartender, giving those two drunkards more sake. And then they would prey on another person for more money.

Another person like her. Reckless. She sighed and turned back to her list. It was not for Naru's sake. This list was not for him.

It was for her. So she never ended up in a situation like that again. A situation that could hurt her or someone she cared about. She never wanted to do that again.

**Self-defense**

When she had been there, her mind had frozen. She had been terrified. She had been all bark and no bite. She needed to keep herself safe. Physically, spiritually, and any way in between.

And there was one more thing she needed to list. She needed to write it down. She did not want to, though. Writing it down would remind her of that moment of utter weakness. That terrifying moment when she had admitted to herself that Naru was not coming for her. That she would have to get herself out of her own situation. Tears fell onto the page the same time her pen met the paper.

**Work on not needing to rely on others**

Chapter 2

Oliver came to work the next day at his normal time. The office was opened at seven and Mai was to come in at eight. She probably would not.

He spent the next hour going through the files once more and screening potential cases. It was tedious and boring work, but he always managed to get it done. This was one of the many things that made him extremely good at whatever he chose to do.

The next time the boy looked at the clock, it was eight fifteen. She was late. Again.

Or was she even coming?

She had to come. Mai would not leave without tell him.

And as if she had heard his doubts, the office door flew open and in walked Mai.

"You're late. Tea," he called. Naru thought he heard her make some sort of reply, but did not catch it.

Mai walked in a few minutes later and left tea on his desk without waiting for any sort of thanks.

"Mai, why are you late?" Naru asked his retreating assistant.

"I…" Mai caught herself and then tried again. "I got caught up with something and lost track of the time. I'm sorry, I will stay overtime."

"That won't be necessary."

"Yes, it is," Mai countered. "Any normal boss would demand it and I should make up for the lost time."

"Fine." Naru did not argue. He watched his assistant leave and couldn't help but feel like something had changed between them. He just - for want of a better word - hoped that this change was for the better.

* * *

Oliver had just finished dismissing the twelfth case. They had all been uninteresting and droll. Much like this day was going. To be perfectly honest, he did enjoy the silence a bit. He had not heard so much as a complaint from Mai.

But he was unsure if that meant she was content or if she was plotting something. She had snuck salt into his tea as payback for something trivial once. Another time she had tried to rig the bathroom to cause him immense discomfort. Yet another time she had made a paperclip chain to decorate the office with. It had annoyed him for the grand total of a second before he had ordered its removal. With the amount of pranks she attempted to pull, she was lucky to still be in a job.

She was so lucky she made great tea, had a smile that made him feel better on the crappiest of days, and was herself. Anyone else would have been fired after the salt.

He sighed and pushed away a pile of paperwork. He needed to make sure she was not doing something childish such as building a house of cards (she had done it before), napping (a common occurrence), or even staring off into space. He opened the door to his office to find something he never thought he would see.

Mai was working at her desk quietly. She seemed to be working intently and nothing seemed to be in her way. He stood there for a few moments, watching her. This was a vast improvement from yesterday, but it was not Mai-like behavior. Should he confront her about it or be happy that she was taking her job seriously?

_It's probably a phase_, he thought, turning back into his office. _I would be wise to enjoy the silence while I can._

Mai had not noticed her boss watching her, she had been too interested in finishing her work. She had her first self-defence lesson after hours and did not want to give Naru any excuse to keep her behind.

She had settled on karate. Partly because the dojo was very close to her apartment, but mostly because it had a focus on the defence part. From her research, she had gathered that some martial arts were more aggressive than others. Muay Thai, for example, sounded positively brutal.

* * *

Quite frankly, Mai felt ridiculous. The white gi was stiff and poofy and she looked very out of place. Inoue-sensei had tied her white belt for her and told her to line up at the end. Mai couldn't help but notice that many people to her right were a lot younger than her.

Five minutes into the lesson and Mai felt like she was about to die; they hadn't even finished the warm up. Her breath was coming in short puffs as she tried to keep up with the shuttle runs and stupid looking stretches. A boy half her age had taken the warm up and he was bending in ways Mai wasn't even sure was humanly possible.

Once the torture had finished, Inoue-sensei asked another black belt to take Mai to one side and teach her a few basics. They started with gedan barai, lower leg block, a standard that almost all exercises began with. Then they moved on to oi zuki, a stepping punch. The black belt, who told Mai her name was Fumiyo, made Mai repeat the movements over and over again until she felt like punching Fumiyo.

Yet at the end, when Inoue-sensei came over and asked Mai to show him what she'd learnt, he was pleased with her progress.

"It seems slow, but you need to master these basics," he said in a deep calming voice. "Just remember, a black belt is a white belt that never gave up."

The lesson finished with all the other students performing kata, what Mai thought looked like a dance of karate moves. Mai couldn't help but be impressed. She kept her eye on Fumiyo, who was leading a trio of karateka in Bassai Dai.

"So you'll be back?" Fumiyo asked her after the lesson had finished and they were changing back into normal clothes.

"Of course." Mai smiled.

"You'll be doing more interesting stuff in no time. As you're a bit older, you'll pick up things faster than the kids. Are you going to train twice a week?"

"Should I?"

"Well, sensei recommends it. The more you train, the quicker you improve and sensei always recognises someone who's willing to put a bit of effort in," Fumiyo confided. "See you on Saturday?"

"Sure!" And Mai left, grinning to herself as she began the walk home.

* * *

Mai walked around her kitchen, setting everything up that she needed for dinner. Honestly, she was more tired now than she had been in the longest time. She was exhausted and just wanted to sleep this nightmare away.

But how much of this was a nightmare? How much of this was just reality? She looked at the list she had tacked onto her fridge. Four little things. She had to work on her recklessness, on her helplessness, on her independence, and on her occasional foolishness. She could not work on sharing the dreams and visions now, but perhaps when she got back into the field.

But would things go back to normal when she got back on cases? Would she allow herself to stop what she had tried so hard to start? She hoped not. She would keep pushing herself to be the best 'her' she could be.

It was all she could do.

* * *

The next day Oliver braced for Mai slacking off or being loud or anything. She had behaved like an excellent employee the day before and he was waiting for the backlash of such actions. He wondered what the girl would do to make up for all the tomfoolery she had missed out on.

Perhaps she would come in twice as late and forget to make tea? Maybe she would make paper airplanes out of the paperwork? He wondered what she would do.

Thus, it could be said he was confused when she came in on time. Slightly astonished that she brought him tea when he asked. On-edge when she was doing her work exactly as it should have been done. He did not talk to her all morning and was quite relieved when Lin came into his office.

"Did you break her?" That was the first question Lin could ask of him. Oliver frowned.

"I haven't talked to her since she went home the day before last. She was normal then," he pointed out.

"But she's acting strangely now."

"And she's not possessed."

"My shiki would have sensed it."

Oliver frowned. Whatever was going on with Mai, it was of her own volition. She was acting strangely for her and whatever was wrong he wanted it fixed. As soon as possible.

"You should talk to her," Lin said. The man might as well have asked him to dance the polka. However…

"Lin, leave. I have some phone calls to make," Oliver said. He picked up the phone as his friend respectfully left his office. However, the shaking of his head as he left was not appreciated.

"Moshi moshi," a familiar voice asked from the other side of the phone.

"Bou-san. Gather Matsuzaki-san and John and come to the office."

"Do we have a case?" the monk asked.

"No. You three are going to get Mai out of whatever slump she's fallen into."

"Did you and Jou-chan have a fight?"

Oliver hung up the phone. Why was it that when something happened, it was always assumed to be his fault? She was the one not talking.

* * *

The monk passed the message along to Ayako and John. John had duties to the orphanage today while the old hag actually had work. So it was only him coming all by his lonesome to check on little Jou-chan. He wondered if she was sulking or raging. He wondered what was going to happen when he opened the door? Would he hear yelling? See things being thrown?

Open the door to a hardworking Mai?

Bou-san blinked for a moment. She was sitting at her desk, working diligently on filing and other sorts of paperwork. She looked up, nodded, and got back to work.

Way too freaky.

"Jou-chan?" he prompted. Mai looked up and her face broke into a grin.

"Bou-san!" she cried. "Do you want tea?"

"I'd prefer iced coffee if there's any going?"

Mai jumped up from her desk and began making beverages, choosing to make tea before Naru asked for it.

Once she had given Naru his tea, he gave her a really weird look when she left it on his desk, she returned to sit with Bou-san while he drank.

"What brings you here?" Mai asked.

"Naru is worried about you and too cowardly to ask you what's wrong."

"Huh?"

"Apparently you've been 'in a slump'. His words, not mine."

"I have not been in a slump!" Mai protested indignantly. "I have been working hard! Like he told me to!"

"Ah, I see why he's concerned." Bou-san said, amused.

"What? Why?"

"When have you ever done what he's told you to do?" Bou-san raised an eyebrow at her as she continued to scowl.

"Most of the time!" But at the look on Bou-san's face, she continued. "Okay, sometimes I might act out a little but most of the time…" Bou-san scoffed. "Am I really that bad?"

"You are never bad, my little Jou-chan." He smiled down at her. "So why the change?"

"Naru told me I wasn't allowed on cases until I stopped being so reckless after what happened…"

"Harsh, but not unreasonable."

"So I've been trying hard to improve myself." Mai faltered a little. "I thought he had a point. I know I can be better than I have been, can't I?"

"Mai, you are perfect just the way you are, but if this is what you want then we are behind you," Bou-san said reassuringly. "I just don't think Naru was expecting such a quick change. Then again, it's good to keep him on his toes."

Mai laughed. Bou-san was supporting her decision; that alone was comforting.

Bou-san finished his drink and Mai returned to work. The monk knocked on Naru's office door and entered.

"Well? What's wrong with her?" Naru demanded.

"She took your advice," Bou-san replied simply. "She said you told her to stop being so reckless and she listened."

"But she's not being Mai anymore." Naru frowned. "I just wanted her to be more careful, not completely change herself!"

"Well you should've thought about that before you went and told her off. But she's got the idea in her head now, she won't change her mind. She can be more stubborn than you if she wants to be."

"Right."

"Is that all?"

"Yes, will you keep an eye on her? I doubt she'll want me sticking my nose in," Naru said, looking back down at his work.

"I don't need you to tell me to do that. I would anyway."

Bou-san turned and left. Naru heard Mai say goodbye to the monk and he sighed. How had his words had such a great effect? He'd told her off before, but this time it was different.

Uneasy, Naru returned to his work.

* * *

Masako took a deep breath as she exited the director's office. Perhaps a week ago she would have felt indignant at the scolding she had just received. She might have felt justified in her behavior. But having the facts exposed to her in such a way… all she felt was humiliation.

Their last co-star had sent a complaint to the company about her behavior. Her snobby attitude and inability to accept when things do not go her way was dragged out into the light, and the lecture had been necessary to avoid getting the media in on the girl's true nature.

And now all the girl could feel was hurt. She never chose to be the company's money-maker. It was not her fault that she usually got what she wanted whenever she wanted it.

Except for one time.

Perhaps she should go back to the one place where she could not be the boss. Perhaps she should go there to learn how to accept things as they are. She will never be in charge there, there is no way she will get what she wants all the time, and it would be a good way to develop her own character.

Yes, perhaps it was time to visit SPR.

She turned into her dressing room, intent on asking for two months worth of vacation time from the show. Perhaps that would be long enough to fix her attitude.

* * *

Masako looked around the apartment she would be living in for the next two months. The studio had agreed with her idea on the premise that she would write out her experiences in a journal and then hand it over to the manager.

She knew they were thinking that if this expedition went well, they could make a movie using her life as a plotline. Regardless, she agreed to the terms. She would be working on her own and living on her own until her manager picked her up again.

But she needed to get Oliver to agree first. Not that she really thought he would turn her down, who would turn down Hara Masako?

Oh yeah, possibly the man she had blackmailed.

Well, there was no time like the present. Masako grabbed her coat and keys and left for SPR. The walk to the office didn't long and Masako was surprised to find Mai working when she arrived.

"Don't, I'm just here to see Naru." Masako said as she noticed Mai making to get up.

To the medium's surprise, the girl merely nodded and sat back down, getting back to work. This action caused Masako to lift an eyebrow, but nothing more. She had a mission to accomplish.

Masako walked over and knocked before entering Naru's office. He looked up upon her arrival with a questioning look.

"I have a request of you," Masako began, uncharacteristically nervous. Naru rose an eyebrow. "I was hoping I could work with you for a month or two. As in full time? On all cases?"

"Why?"

"I'm taking a break from the studio," Masako replied, her pride preventing her from revealing the full extent of the truth.

"Fine."

"What?"

"Fine, you can work here," Naru looked back down at his work. "You start tomorrow."

"You're going to agree just like that?" Masako was slightly shocked.

"Mai is not working cases. Your insights have been of assistance before," Naru replied coldly. "Though if you could wear more practical clothing…"

"Of course," Masako agreed. "Look, I know before we didn't…" She trailed off awkwardly.

"Hara-san, if you have something to say get on with it. I want to continue with my work."

"I am sorry for before. I hope we can move forward and have a cordial working relationship."

"Of course," Naru said. "I will see you tomorrow."

_Well that went about as well as expected_, Masako thought as she left the office. She waved to goodbye to Mai and headed home; she needed to find some practical clothing.

* * *

The store was relatively quiet. Especially for a Friday night, the department store was filled with barely anyone.

"Can I help you?" a kindly employee asked. Mai smiled at her.

"Yes, I'm working for casual work clothes," she said. The employee nodded.

"First job, huh? You're the second one today. Our work selection is over this way," the girl said, leading Mai. "It's gonna be hard to adjust to the professional outfits, but they go a long way in helping the company image and making you look smart."

"That's what I'm hoping for," Mai admitted with a small smile. The woman nodded in understanding before bringing her to a corner of the store that appeared very out-of-the-way.

"If you need anything, let me know," the girl said. Mai nodded with a smile before working her way through the racks.

_I'm going to do this for me. Naru won't be there forever and when I need to change jobs, I need to be prepared,_ Mai thought. She sifted through a few blouses. Some of them were kind of cute while others were ghastly. She ended up choosing a white blouse, a green blouse, and a sky-blue blouse. She also picked out a blazer. It was black with a gold color lining the pockets. She thought it looked cool and somewhat stylish, even if the style was so subtle one could barely notice it.

She then thought it would be wise to look through the slacks. Don't get her wrong, she loved her skirts dearly and would probably wear them on her days off or fun events, but her job required her to run around and even got her hurt. It would just be a better idea to wear slacks. Despite that logic, she found herself pulling a pencil skirt off the rack.

_Just one won't hurt… It's not like I'm running __all_ _the time,_ Mai thought. She picked out another skirt and two slacks. While they, too, were black, she knew this was because black happened to be practical. Her blouses would be lightly colored, enough to bring life to her wardrobe during the workday.

"Maybe I'll head straight home after work to change for after work fun, like I used to when I had school and no job," Mai said aloud. It had worked before and she hoped it would work again. She took her selections to a fitting room and began to try on what she had gathered.

Mai found it extremely odd to see herself in such smart professional clothing. She felt slightly fraudulent; like a child dressing her mother's clothing. The pencil skirt looked awesome, but it restricted her legs slightly and thus would definitely only be suitable for the office.

As she pulled on the first blouse she could hear someone complaining in the next cubicle.

"Why do none of these shirts fit?" The voice was female and obviously irritated. "Why doesn't anywhere make shirts for people with breasts."

Mai held back a snigger as her neighbour growled. Her blouse fit beautifully. As she swung the blazer around her shoulders, Mai posed in a 'I'm an important business woman' kind of way and then laughed again.

Happy with her choices, Mai left the changing rooms and headed to the checkout. After paying, she left the shop and began her walk home. She passed a coffee shop a minute or two later and had to suppress another giggle.

Mai ducked into the coffee shop and ordered her drink to go. She left a few minutes later with her coffee in one hand and her shopping in the other. _Just like a professional. Fake it til you make it,_ she thought as she strode down the street.

Then she tripped over a loose paving slab and almost spilled her hot coffee down herself.

"That was close…" she muttered. "I need to look where I am going."

She began walking again, a little slower this time, and managed to get the whole way home without falling again.

Once within the confines of her flat, Mai started her dinner. As it cooked, she began practicing the things she'd learnt in her karate lesson. She felt slightly ridiculous prancing around her kitchen. In the lesson, everyone else had been doing similar things, she had been part of the group. But out of the lesson, she looked slightly ridiculous.

"Maybe it's the gi," she mused. "Looking the part and all."

But a sizzling noise withdrew her from her thoughts and she hastily stirred her food.

The dish she had now was more or less a healthier version of what she had been feeding herself for the past few years. It had been slightly more expensive, but she was keen to see if eating healthier would actually put her in a lifestyle where she could feel comfortable and safe. She poured it into a small bowl for herself and set her dishes to soak.

"Itadakimasu," she murmured before taking a bite. Her eyes popped. Was healthy food supposed to be this delicious? Maybe this change was not such a bad one after all…

* * *

Oliver took a deep breath as he shut up the office for the day. Mai's behavior worried him. Hara-san's request for assistance really could not have come at a better time, he supposed. The girl was the only one who was reasonable enough to see that this change in Mai was not exactly going to be helpful for the company.

Or for himself, if he was being completely honest.

He could only hope that the medium would see things his way rather than side with the useless monk.

* * *

Masako arrived at the office early on Saturday morning dressed in 'normal' clothes. It wasn't that she never wore such garments, but it was still odd. Her kimono's were part of her image, a shield - or a sleeve - she could hide behind.

"Masako?" Mai greeted her. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm working with you for a bit," Masako replied shyly.

"Do we have a case?" Mai frowned, had she missed something?

"No, I'm just taking some time off from the studio and offered my assistance here."

Mai's frown deepened.

"Mai, show Hara-san how the filing system works and answer any other questions she may have," Naru said from the doorway of his office. "Then make tea."

"Okay." Mai turned to Masako and nodded towards the filing cabinets. "You had time off from your real job and you offered to help with filing?" Mai was trying to keep the 'are you mad?' tone out of her voice, but wasn't sure that she was quite managing it.

"I took the time off in order to accomplish some personal goals," Masako said. Mai's eyes narrowed, but she kept her cool. She would not go back to unprofessional fights over personal matters. She would not… "And before you ask, no, it has nothing to do with Shibuya-san."

Damn.

"I see," Mai said. "So, what are you trying to accomplish, if you don't mind me asking?"

The girl did not answer immediately and Mai used that time to show her what was necessary to file correctly. Such as the fact that she needed to look at last name and how long the case took in order to place it correctly. Also, all of the file reports had to be placed in the same folder and it sometimes took hours to find them all. Mai would probably show her the shortcut of printing the reports over again later. Probably. Maybe. She should learn the hard way first.

"I'll leave you to try filing these three cases correctly and I'll see how you did," Mai said once she had explained everything. She still did not have an answer from the medium. "Don't mark up the files, okay?"

"Fine," Masako said, looking down at the folders. Mai left the room to make the tea and allowed herself to think about what had just happened.

She was mentoring Masako on how to file. She was a medium! She was better than Mai's low job! And what was with that 'personal reason' stuff?

Then again, Masako was not the only one going through personal issues. Mai had to remind herself that everyone had their own reasons for their actions. And the girl had already said Naru was not her end goal. So what could she possibly gain from spending hours upon hours doing demeaning paperwork, listening to a boss who had no problem saying you were an idiot, and barely making a living at it?

The tea had finished and Mai still had no answer. Perhaps she should shelve the questions for now. Masako probably had her reasons just like she did.

Masako surprised Mai. She did not make a single mistake. So she set her another task. Masako did not complain or anything. Though Mai suspected from her facial expression that she very much wished to.

Once, Naru came out of his office and observed the two young women working. He only stayed for a few minutes. Neither woman said anything. He knew he ought to be pleased at the silence, but an odd feeling settled in his stomach.

"Tea," he demanded and returned to his office.

And this was only the first day like this. The following week in the office was very quiet.

But the following Wednesday, they had a client.

A young woman by the name of Iijima Hirono arrived a little after 10am. Mai jumped up to make tea, while Masako alerted Naru to the presence of their guest.

Naru exited his office, notepad in hand and sat down opposite Iijima-san.

"How might we help you today?"

"I… I'm sorry. I don't really know where to begin…" the young woman confessed. She took the tea from Mai with grateful-albeit trembling-hands. "There's just so much… I can't…"

"It's all right," Mai soothed her in her normal way. "Take the time you need."

Everyone in the room-save the client-seemed to notice Oliver's lack of glare for interruption. No one commented on it as the client took a small sip of the calming liquid.

"When I bought the house," she began. "I didn't think it was haunted. Actually haunted. I thought it was just a story to get the house price to go down. I was thrilled because it was so beautiful. The last owner told me that whoever steps into that house will have misfortune follow them…"

"Have you experienced anything relating to the paranormal?" Oliver asked, getting back on track.

"I-" The woman faltered in her words. She trembled with tears in her eyes. "All I wanted was to dream… all I wanted was to…"

Whatever the woman had wanted to say next was gone. Her energy was gone and she fell forward with the utmost lack of grace. Mai rushed forward to catch her, preventing her head from hitting the corner of the table.

"Iijima-san? Iijima-san?" Mai asked repeatedly, attempting to wake their client.

"Mai, she won't wake."

"What?" the brunette asked as she turned to the girl who had spoken. "What are you talking about, Masako? She's not…"

"No, but she has been possessed since before she entered. It's possible she will be quite disoriented when she does come around, but she can't have much strength at the moment," the black haired girl assured quickly. "I recommend making her comfortable before she wakes and then asking her what she remembers."

"Are you going to help?" Mai asked as she began to turn Iijima-san onto her side so she would be laying on the sofa. Masako sighed and helped prop up their client's head, while Mai removed her shoes.

"There is nothing we can do until she wakes," Naru said, sighing as he stood. "Call me when that happens. And Mai?"

"Yes?"  
"Tea."

And with that, he strode into his office and shut the door behind him.

Mai rolled her eyes and made her way to the kitchen. She busied herself making tea and pondered what they had got out of Iijima-san. She wanted to dream? What was that about?

Did she mean dream as in aspiring to something? Or as in sleeping?

Masako appeared in the kitchen as Mai began pouring their boss's beverage.

"Do you want some?" Mai offered.

"No, I'll take this through though," Masako replied and picked up Naru's cup. Mai was about to argue, but let the matter drop. Masako had said that this wasn't about getting the man's attention. And it was just one cup of tea.

Besides, Masako was just as much of an assistant as Mai was so she should have to suffer the indignity of being a tea lady (or personal tea slave) too.

Iijima-san did not come round for almost half an hour. Mai dutifully called Naru and then supplied their guest with tea.

"I'm… Where..?" Iijima frowned as she looked around the office. "I'm sorry."

"Don't worry," Mai said kindly.

"You were telling us about the problems with your house," Naru said.

"Give her a minute!" Mai turned on Naru, who rolled his eyes.  
Masako would have rolled her eyes at how easily the two would turn on each other, but instead decided to pay attention to the client. She was, after all, in this job in order to improve herself. Doing so included being aware of the needs of those who required her focus.

"The house? I don't know much about it… I only bought it last week and I only went inside once," Iijima-san said. "I was about to put my personal belongings away, but it looks like I never did?"

"How do you mean?" Masako asked. She was curious as to the effects of the spirit on this woman, but also concerned with how long she might have been under its influence.

"Well, I was about to walk in and then I find myself in this strange office. I don't even know where I am in Yokohama…"

One could have heard a pin drop.

"Iijima-san, you are currently in Tokyo, Dogenzaka district," Mai informed. Her tone was gentle and her eyes worried. "Do you know what day it is?"

The answer widened Masako's eyes.

"Iijima-san, that was almost two weeks ago," the medium stated. The woman was losing color quickly.

"I… You're lying to me!" the woman yelled, standing up and gathering all of her belongings. Her shoes were roughly thrust on in the heat of her embarrassment. "If this is some sort of scam, I can honestly say I do not appreciate it! I'm leaving!"

Before any one of them could halt the woman, she stormed out of the front door, leaving it to slam heavily in her wake. The office lay quiet for a few moments.

"Shouldn't we go after her? Tokyo isn't a safe place when you're so disoriented…" Mai said. She looked forlornly at the door.

"Leave her. If she wants our help, she will return," Naru said.

"But-"

The next words she would have spoken were not heard. The boss had already returned to his office. Mai turned her pleading eyes to Masako.

"Masako-"

"It would be wise to listen to Shibuya-san in this instance," Masako warned as she returned to her desk. Although she, too, was worried for the fate of that woman, she knew there would be nothing they could do to help against a human threat. "She will be fine."

With that, the medium returned to her work. She worked on the papers for a full five minutes before the door chimed again.

But she only looked up to see Mai's form running out of the door.

_**AmyNChan: So… that's all we got. XD**_

_**Snavej: Yeah, but it was awesome. And this way, Nia won't kill us… **_

_**AmyNChan: *slams hand over Snav's mouth* You heard nothing of our diabolical plans to make people cry-**_

_**Snavej: *escapes* And break the fandom!**_

_**AmyNChan: ehe… we should probably run, huh?**_

_**Snavej: *locks the door* I'm safe! **_

_**AmyNChan: O_O help… *faints***_


End file.
